Course Objectives

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Purpose of the page:

The objectives of a course are the bare bones of what you will be expected to know by the end of a course. Some you will already known when you sign up for the course, some you will have to learn.

Objectives for Taxonomy vs Systematics page:

The student will be able to:

1. describe the function of classification
2. distinguish between taxonomy and systematics and be able to identify a classification as systematic or taxonomic
3. describe the reasons for preferring natural classifications over artificial classifications
4. describe the reason that classical taxonomy is an hierarchical scheme of classification
5. describe the role that key characteristics play in taxonomy
6. describe why consistency is both valuable for taxonomy and hard to achieve.
7. distinguish between phenetics and cladistics
8. describe the essential features of a dendrogram, including its shape and the assumptions about time inherent in a dendrogram
9. relate the reason that botanical taxonomy uses "division", rather than "phylum" as the hierarchical level below that of kingdom and above that of class
10. define the following terms:
    • Plant Morphology
    • Classification
    • Taxonomy
    • Systematics
    • Natural Classification
    • Binomial
    • Hierarchy
    • Key Characteristic
    • Consistency
    • Phenetics
    • Cladistics.
    • Dendrogram
    • Division
    • Phylum

Objectives for Morphology page:

The student will be able to:

• describe and identify from a living plant the following structures:

  Stem, Leaf, Bud, Root, Node, Lenticle, Bract, Leaf Parts (Blade, Petiole, Midrib, Stipule), Leaf Veination (parallel, pinnate, reticulate), Leaf Margins (Smooth, Dentate, Serrate, Lobed Crenate), Leaf Arrangements (Alternate, Opposite, Whorled, Simple, Compound, Palmate, Pinnate, Bipinnate), Leaf Shapes (Elliptical,Obovate), Leaf Tip Shapes (Acute, Accuminate), Flower Types (Complete, Incomplete, Perfect, Imperfect), Flower Parts (Receptacle, Perianth, Calyx - Sepal, Corolla - Petal, Stamen, Anther, Filament, Pistil, Stigma, Style, Ovary, Carpel [Simple, Compound]), Flower Shapes (Radial, Bilateral [Zygomorphic], Superior, Inferior), Fruit Types (Drupe, Berry, Hesperidium, Pepo, Pome, Aggregate, Multiple, Samara, Nut, Grain, Achene, Capsule, Silique, Legume, Follicle)

Objectives for Plant Kingdom page:

The student will be able to:

• Describe the common characteristics all plants share
• Identify a specimen as a Bryophyte
• Describe the characteristics that separate Bryophytes from other required plant divisions (see below for which plant divisions are required).
• Identify a specimen as a Equisetophyte
• Identify a specimen as a Lycopodiophyte
• Identify a specimen as a Pteridiophyte
• Describe the differences between Vascular Plants and Non-Vascular Plants.
• Describe the differences between Flowering Seed Plants and Non-Flowering Seed Plants.
• Identify a specimen as a Coniferophyte
• Identify a specimen as a Cycadophyte
• Identify a specimen as a Pteridiophyte
• Identify a specimen as a Ginkophyte
• Describe the differences between Monocots and Dicots in cotyledon number, leaf veination, flower part number, arrangement of stem vascular bundles, presence of secondary growth, and the manner in which roots originate.
• Identify a specimen as a Magnoliophyte
• Identify a specimen as a Liliopsid
• Identify a specimen as a Magnoliopsid
• Define the following terms:
• Liana
• Epiphyte
• Cone
• Evergreen
• Deciduous
• Diagram the Dendrogram of the Plant Kingdom presented on the web page.

Objectives for Plant Family page:

For the following plant families:

1. Aceraceae
2. Cactaceae
3. Compositae
4. Curcubitaceae
5. Fabaceae
6. Fagaceae
7. Orchidaceae
8. Poaceae
9. Rosaceae
10. Solanaceae

the student will be able to:

• give the common and scientific names for the family
• describe the general leaf, flower and fruit characteristics of members of the family
• describe the importance of the family to the human economy and the uses to which members of the family have been employed.

Objectives for Collection:

The student will collect, identify, and mount 50 specimens of local plant species.

The student will present a collection that includes specimens from at least two plant taxonomic group above that of the family.

The student will present a collection that includes specimens from at least ten different plant families.

Last updated on July 5, 2006